The Cincinnati Reds started off the 2022 MLB season with a 3-22 record.
It’s certainly hard to believe that a team that was in possession of a postseason spot at one point in the second half last year could look so bad over their first 25 games of the following campaign.
But some key injuries (Luis Castillo, Jonathan India), prominent players underperforming (Joey Votto), and the huge talent turnover that took place in the offseason hit the team really hard.
The season, however, is extremely long, and the Reds went from looking like a Double-A team to playing like a legit MLB squad in a span of weeks.
In fact, the Reds are currently a respectable team.
As noted by Codify Baseball, they have won 17 of their last 30 games.
The Cincinnati Reds are on a 17-13 run.
— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) June 8, 2022
Now, this is not to say the Reds are as good as the New York Yankees or the Los Angeles Dodgers, but they are much, much better than they looked at the beginning of the year.
The Reds Are No Longer The Worst Team In Baseball
It’s been a little while since they had the worst record in baseball.
In fact, the 20-35 Reds are better than the 20-37 Oakland Athletics and the 17-37 Kansas City Royals, and almost as good as the 21-36 Washington Nationals.
Castillo returned, Votto has been much better since being activated from the COVID-19 list a couple of weeks ago, and some struggling youngsters have started to develop.
Hunter Greene, for example, looked unhittable in his last start and seems to be gaining some consistency, judging by his 0/16 BB/K ratio over his last two outings.
Additionally, the Reds are enjoying what appears to be a breakout season from infielder Brandon Drury (.266/.326/.514, 11 home runs).
Pitchers Connor Overton and Graham Ashcraft are having amazing seasons, as well.
All in all, the Reds may be decent.
They are not actually good, but as of now, they are far from the worst team in baseball.
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